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Abigail:
"Run! Run, they are coming! You need to hide—don't let them catch you! RUN!" it shouted as I dashed through the forest. My lungs burned, my legs felt like they would snap, but I didn't dare stop. The pounding of footsteps echoed behind me, heavier, faster, almost unnatural. The air grew colder, and I could feel its hot breath brushing the back of my neck, as if death itself was chasing me.
"Why are you following me?" I yelled, my voice breaking as I sprinted blindly between the trees.
"We are not following you… we are trying to warn you," it replied, its voice shaking.
I skidded to a stop, heart hammering in my chest, desperate to see the shadow more clearly. But before I could step closer, something tore through the darkness. A horrifying creature leapt from the shadows—its twisted limbs snapping branches like twigs, its glowing eyes locked onto its prey.
With a snarl, it lunged at the figure, knocking it to the ground. Claws ripped into flesh, shredding skin like paper. The air was filled with sickening cracks of bones breaking and the wet sound of tearing flesh. The shadow screamed, its voice sharp and desperate, echoing in the forest as the creature's fangs sank deep into its throat. Blood sprayed across the leaves, dark and glistening under the pale moonlight.
I stumbled back, my whole body trembling. I tried to run again, but my legs betrayed me—frozen in place, like the ground had swallowed me whole.
"Run… they are coming…" it gasped, its voice fading as life drained from its body.The creature slowly lifted its head from the mangled corpse, its jaws dripping with blood. Its eyes locked onto mine. It stood tall, its chest rising and falling like a beast preparing to strike. Then, with a bone-chilling screech, it began stalking toward me.
"No… no, please stop!" I shouted, my voice breaking, but it lunged at me in an instant—teeth bared, claws outstretched.
And then, I woke up with a scream.
"Oh God… not again. That nightmare," I muttered. It had been a week since they started. At first, it was just the shadow, but now there was a creature too. I shook my head and got up to get ready for school.
Downstairs, I found my parents at the breakfast table.
"Good morning, sweetheart. Why the long face?" Dad asked.
"Nothing serious… I had another nightmare, but this time I saw a strange creature too. Why am I having these nightmares?" I asked, watching as his eyes flickered with something I couldn't identify—panic, maybe? He quickly masked it.
"What creature, dear?" he asked cautiously.
"I don't know. At first, it was only the shadow. It kept on telling me to run and hide because 'they' were coming. It never said who they were. But today… the shadow said they were trying to warn me. Also I saw a creature. When it attacked the shadow, the shadow moved—and You know what it was a person, Dad… then the creature killed them," I said, my voice trembling.
Dad exchanged a look with Mom. She shook her head at him.
"Sweetheart, it was just a nightmare. Don't think too much about it," Mom said softly, reaching for my hand.
"But Mom, the shadow said something about warning me…"
"I know, sweetheart. But it's just a nightmare. Don't worry," she reassured me, glancing at Dad.
Just then, my twin brother, Aiden, walked in.
"Good morning, everyone. What are you talking about?" he asked.
"Good morning, dear. Come have breakfast, or you'll be late for school," Mom said.
Aiden looked at me with concern. "Another nightmare?" he asked.
"Yeah… it's weird. And today, I saw a creature, and the shadow…" I began, but Dad interrupted.
"That's enough. Eat your breakfast, you two. You're getting late," he said firmly.
Aiden and I exchanged a glance but didn't say anything else as we ate.
After breakfast, Mom called us.
"Abigail, Aiden… you two have to come home after school. We need to talk," she said.
I looked at Aiden and replied, "Okay, Mom. We'll come home."